Traders Hotel by Shangri-La

Splendid stay on sunset strip
By Nico Erle Ciriaco


Traders Hotel Manila (THM), the Shangri-La Group-managed hotel in the bay area, offers a unique stay experience, more so, with the recent refurbishment of its rooms and suites, especially the beautifully-decked executive rooms in the Club Floors. And wining & dining at the T-Lounge feels like partying in the sky, being strategically perched at the topmost floor of the hotel. “The Shangri-La and Traders brands not only bring prestige and comfort but more importantly security and safety which are prime concerns of most foreign travellers. And consistency is another thing you’ll easily discern while staying in any Traders Hotel because the level of personalized service is the same all over the world. We have good teams that work ‘round the clock who all go the extra mile so everyone leaves wanting to come back,” enthused general manager Gordon Aeria, during an exclusive colloquy with Business Mirror.
Today’s travelling market demography is changing and the market mix has turned more corporate in what used to be a wholly leisure segment. “We have increased our guest registry by 18 percent and today we are enjoying 81 percent occupancy that seems to be rising by the day.”
In whichever wing guests will be staying, they are assured of “rooms with a view” as THM is located smack right on Roxas Boulevard's sunset strip. The hotel brand is also delighted to announce the near-completion of its new periodic facilities upgrade that would benefit not only in-house guests but also the hotel staff as well. “We have just opened our newly spruced-up staff cafeteria that has both hot and cold choices as well as healthy options bearing food themes from all our F&B outlets – Kitsho, Latitude, Lobby Lounge, and the T-Lounge. The staff elevators are now in place as well as the new locker rooms. And they’ll be wearing a new uniform very soon.”
Designed in contemporary style and functionality, each room provides business and leisure travellers with all the modern comforts and amenities expected of a 4-star international deluxe hotel. “The hotel's best-kept secret is our view of Manila Bay. It's something you pay for with big bucks in anywhere abroad. We have a quality product with lots of potential; making us a contributing player in the bay area. We are the only international 4-star hotel in the Manila shorefront, offering competitive advantages to boot. And topping it all is the top-notch Filipino hospitality that's recognized as a premier quality globally. Our guests get very good value for their money.”
The Traders Club rooms and suites have undergone major renovations and redesign to showcase a relaxed, stylish interior with warm tones and comfortable furnishings. All of its 36-square-meter rooms and 72-square-meter suites come equipped with every modern traveller’s necessities that includes a king-sized bed, spacious desk area with 24/7 free Wi-Fi & broadband connection, as well as an iLap/iPod dock and Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) that enables guests to access their billing, order in-room dining, watch the latest movies in high-definition, and many more related E-concerns.
“We are increasing our band-width to 22 megabytes-per-second (mbps), making us the fastest in the bay area. Not everybody can stay in a 5-star hotel. But here, you get five-star amenities without creating a dent in your pocket. A smile on our guests' faces gives me a lot of satisfaction,” intoned the Singapore-born Aussie national, who surprised us by saying he has a fraternal twin – Russell – who’s into trading commodities.
Traders Hotel Manila has a total of 303 spacious guestrooms and suites that provide guests with the essentials of a quality hotel room: a chic and functional boudoir, a very comfortable bed and spanking clean bathrooms; all these make for a wonderful home away from home. The hotel’s advantageous location, which is about 20 minutes away from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport; and a short drive away from the Makati business district, offers guests a competitive advantage as it allows them to move around the city with ease and meet the daily rigors of their hectic itineraries. It is also an ideal jump-off point for leisure travellers who plan on going to island resorts before or after a short visit in the city. The hotel is also within close proximity to the metro’s premier convention and exhibition centres like the Philippine International Convention Center, the World Trade Center, the SMX Exhibition Hall as well as a couple of international embassies. Also, five minutes from Traders Hotel is the biggest shopping edifice in Asia – the SM Mall of Asia. And for a taste of the country’s rich art & culture, just across the hotel is the famed Cultural Center of the Philippines.
GM Aeria offers his warmest welcome to visitors of Manila, “We look forward to delighting our guests from here and abroad, providing each and every one a nice home away from home. All our spacious clean rooms have the signature Shangri-La beds. Our limousine services have Wi-Fi routers too. Being connected to the information highway is a P5-million annual expense on our part. It’s a costly exercise, you might say, but the economies of scale bring the costs down. Our competitors follow through, yes they do. However, maintaining that service is the challenge of every hotel anywhere. We put a lot of resources into quality standards: financial, operational and manpower. By the last quarter of this year, guests will be delighted to know we’ll be opening our spa and health club. It’s something to look forward to,” GM Aeria intimated at the end of our tete-a-tete.
Hong Kong-based Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts currently owns and/or manages 66 hotels under the Shangri-La and Traders brands, with a rooms inventory of over 33,000. Traders Hotels are designed to satisfy the needs of the fast growing mid-market travel segment by offering a wide range of facilities and efficient, practical and friendly hospitality, at very competitive rates. Traders Hotels are located in Abu Dhabi, Beijing, Changzhou, Dubai, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Shenyang, Singapore, Yangon and Manila with scheduled openings in Iskandar and Macau. The group has over 40 projects under development in Austria, Canada, mainland China, France, India, Macau, Malaysia, Russia, Qatar, Seychelles, Turkey, United Kingdom and the Philippines. For more information and/or reservations, please contact a travel professional by accessing their Web site www.tradershotels.com.